My
name is Stephanie Zonis, and welcome to the February, 2000 edition
of "For Chocolate Lovers Only". Each month, you'll find great
recipes, tips, and recommendations on where to find chocolate
specialties.

Chocolate
Recommendation of the Month: February's Chocolate Recommendation
is Payard Patisserie and Bistro, in New York City. Day
or evening, you can drop in here for a meal, afternoon tea,
or a restorative pastry and a cup of coffee. What might interest
you further, reader, are Francois Payard's chocolates. They
are on the small side, decorated in an understated but classy
fashion, and unfailingly good. Many are named after artists,
like the Rodin (white chocolate and raspberry ganache in dark
chocolate) and the Degas (crushed coffee beans in dark and milk
chocolate ganache). Still more to be praised are the truffles,
dark chocolate ganache with a touch of rum, dusted over with
cocoa powder. The chocolates, along with fruit jellies, teas
blended specially for Payard, and some gift selections, are
sold on Payard's website.

The chocolates, truffles, teas, etc. would make a lovely Valentine's
Day gift---or a lovely gift for almost any occasion, really.
Payard Patisserie and Bistro also does wedding cakes;
they have a number of pictures of them on their website. I recently
heard Francois Payard give a talk at a pastry and dessert conference.
In a time when so much emphasis is placed on how food looks,
Payard's philosophy is that everything ultimately revolves around
how it tastes. To my mind, this is a more-than-sufficient reason
to try his creations. Payard Patisserie and Bistro is
located at 1032 Lexington Avenue in New York City. You can call
them toll-free at (877) 9-PAYARD, or browse through the informative
and appealing website at www.payard.com.

Chocolate
Book of the Month: Once upon a time, there was a chef who
became a therapist. Out of curiosity, as he treated his patients,
he gradually began to make inquiries into their chocolate consumption
habits. What he found surprised him. The outcome is Chocolate
Therapy: Dare to Discover Your Inner Center! by Murray Langham.
Mr. Langham, the therapist, claims he can tell you about your
personality according to your tastes in chocolates; this includes
what you do with the leftover candy wrapper in addition to preferences
in shape and flavor of center.

I don't believe I've ever seen anything quite like Chocolate
Therapy: Dare to Discover Your Inner Center! You need to
decide for yourself how much heed you'll pay to the author's
words, but certainly a number of different personality theories
are postulated and reading through the book can be quite entertaining.
I'd recommend this book as a fun Valentine's Day gift (in addition
to a box of chocolates, of course!), or you might want to grab
a group of your friends and use this book (and a box of chocolates)
as the basis for a get-together. Chocolate Therapy: Dare
to Discover Your Inner Center! was published by Ten Speed
Press in 1999, and it's available at www.tenspeed.com, www.amazon.com,
and many bookstores and gift shops. Psychological analysis has
never been so sweet!

Do you have a comment, question, or suggestion? I'd like your
input into this column. You can reach me at: sdziadwm@nac.net;
please specify that you're writing regarding "For Chocolate
Lovers Only". Thanks!